


The Sun and Moon Get Crossed, but They Never Touch

by keelover



Category: Avengers (Comics), Black Widow (Comics), Iron Man (Comic), Marvel (Comics), Marvel 616
Genre: Declarations Of Love, Engagement, F/F, Hurt/Comfort, Reconciliation, Romance, Sexual Content, Slow Build
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-10-08
Updated: 2012-10-08
Packaged: 2017-11-15 21:49:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,180
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/532144
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/keelover/pseuds/keelover
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Through her, Natasha had learned the pain of regret, the joy of kindness and the salvation of mercy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Sun and Moon Get Crossed, but They Never Touch

**Author's Note:**

> First, I've sort of fallen in love with this pairing by accident.
> 
> Second, parts of this fic is based of the Black Widow comics, so if you prefer not to be spoiled, I warned you.
> 
> Third, the title of this fic was taken from a line of On Looking Up By Chance At the Constellations by Robert Frost.

If you want to know the truth about someone, let them reveal themselves in complete darkness. Their true form will emerge, and most often it is ugly. The warm body beside her; however, wasn’t ugly. The bed shifted, a thin arm wrapping around the mid of her waist, pale and freckled. This darkness wasn’t cold, wasn’t broken, but it wasn’t the truth either, not exactly.   
  
A ballerina. No, an assassin.   
  
There was truth in her past, and there were lies, and the two often mingled together to both hurt and confuse her. The warm breath against the back of her neck didn’t hurt, though, felt good as it lingered, soft lips just inches away from her skin. There was blood, lies and manipulation from which she would never be free of, but the body curled up behind her saw through all of that. The noise of the city still echoed faintly through her room, lights parading shadows along the wall. All shadows held secrets.  
  
There was a girl. No, a trained killer.  
  
Pepper hadn’t played polite upon their first meeting, she knew Natasha wasn’t all she seemed. She called her a murderer and a liar, and she was right. There was something there in the green of her eyes, enhanced by large framed glasses, that Natasha desired for herself. There was regret, kindness and mercy. There was a desire to protect what she believed in, what she loved, and at the time, Natasha hadn’t understood that.  
  


❄❄❄

  
  
“I think you’re obsessed,” Tony had said, catching Natasha off guard. Natasha had never been caught off guard, and it had unsettled her that a woman, as meek and dull as Pepper Potts was, could make her lose sight of her mission.There she was, Tony Stark’s delicate little secretary, shuffling papers with a pen in her mouth as she took no note of them. Natasha knew he wouldn’t make a move, not here, not with his employees so close. “She’s a good girl.”  
  
Natasha glared at him. “She’s not a girl. She’s a woman,” she said, moving towards the open air duct she had crawled in through.   
  
Tony had laughed, deep and clear, she remembered it even after all these years. “My apologies, but just so you know...I think she’s got a crush on you. I mean, she won’t break into buildings or anything for you, but...she’s a good woman.” It was, Natasha knew, a warning.  
  
And one she should have heeded.  
  
Pepper will never know the first man who attempted to take her life, simply because Natasha had killed him before he ever got the chance. She wasn’t a hero, not then, not now, but she had saved her life, whether or not Pepper knew it. A soft sigh escaped a pouty mouth, lips pressing against the side of Natasha’s neck. “Don’t you ever sleep?” she asked, hand finding hers, twining their fingers together.  
  
No, she didn’t. No, she couldn’t.   
  
Natasha rolled over, face to face with Pepper in the darkness as their limbs tangled together in a web she didn’t mind, fingers tracing a high cheekbone. There was a woman, long ago, who Pepper reminded her of; a woman who had died in Russia during the invasion. The thought unnerved her, reminded her how long she had been alive. There were so many she had outlived, and more still to come. Tender fingers brushed the hair away from her face, fingers that were no longer delicate or dainty, but callused.  
  
The arc reactor pressed against her chest as she held Pepper closer, hands caressing her back as she pressed their lips together, hoping the questions would fade from her mind. She could feel Pepper smile, taste it on the tip of her tongue. Natasha loved her, knew she was too close, that Pepper would be in even more danger getting involved with her, but she always waited for her. Where others had given up, Pepper had held firm, decided that, no matter what, she would take what Natasha could give. It wasn’t much.  
  


❄❄❄

  
  
The first time Natasha had taken advantage of her wasn’t as successful as she liked to pretend it was. In fact, that evening, she was in search of Stark Industries owner and defense contractor, when she stumbled upon his secretary instead. Pepper had shrieked, startled as she dropped the files she held in her hand, glasses sliding down her nose; her hair was shorter back then. The black skirt she wore was modest, but her long legs were tantalizing enough on their own. Natasha strayed from her mission, not for the first time, and most certainly not for the last.  
  
“What-What are you doing here?” she had asked, backing away until she bumped into the desk behind her. “You’re not supposed to be here.”  
  
Natasha had smirked, preying upon her as she moved forward, pinning her down onto the polished oak desk, knee pressing in between her thighs. Pepper’s eyes had widened, cheeks bright red as she tried to twist her way free, but to no avail. “Where is he?” she had asked, mouth pressed along the shell of her ear.  
  
Pepper shook her head, hands fighting to be free of her. “You can’t...You can’t manipulate, or frighten me into telling you. And as a matter of fact, I don’t even know where he is!” She was a fighter, even if she didn’t know it at the time.  
  
“I’ll just have to ring back, then. Won’t I?” There was a twinkle in her eye as she fled, a game of cat and mouse initiated. She had forgotten about her true target, riddled with thoughts too confusing for her to understand at the time.  
  
Her mind was a fragile web of half remembered things.  
  


❄❄❄

  
  
“Hello, are you there? Can you hear me?” Natasha centered herself, remembering where she was and who she was with. Pepper had turned on the lamp placed on the nightstand beside her, eyes searching her face for an answer as she sat up.  
  
“Sorry, thinking.” Pepper stretched, white tank top loose in all the right places, drawing Natasha’s attention. Natasha reached for her, pulling her down as she removed the cotton material. Pepper laughed, kicking the sheets down around their feet. Natasha, more often than not, slept in the nude, using this to her advantage as she rolled over, pinning Pepper down like she had so long ago, kissing her as she arched her back, breasts rubbing against each other. Natasha slid her hands down along her body, dragging Pepper’s black shorts with them.   
  


❄❄❄

  
  
She had been stalking her for months, from her apartment to work, and then back again. Natasha hadn’t thought of herself as obsessed, she was simply surveilling, storing precious information to use later. What had possessed her to break into her apartment and have a look around was anyone’s guess; she wasn’t proud of it, but did so nonetheless. Natasha reminded herself that she was close to Stark, which meant she could be used against him, never mind the fact Natasha had given up on that venture long ago; defected to the United States after a lifetime of being controlled. One night, instead of fleeing, she decided to stay, waiting until Pepper arrived home from a long day at work.  
  
“You again,” she said, removing her green petite coat. “Please, if you’re going to kill me, do it soon. I’m tired of this, and worse, I’ve had an awful day.”   
  
Natasha felt slighted, having been so certain that she would garner a reaction out of her. She remained on the beige chaise lounge connected to the loveseat. Pepper huffed, tossing her keys onto the kitchen counter. “Care for a margarita?” she asked, opening one of the cabinets above her head. “Hmm, no mixer. Care for a bottle of tequila?”  
  
“Are you making a date out of this?” Natasha had asked, incredulous.   
  
Pepper looked at her with her lips twisted to one side. “I’ve spent my day playing professional babysitter. I’m being stalked, by you, and all I want is a drink. I could offer you the stereotypical vodka instead, if you’d prefer.”  
  
“Tequila’s fine.”       
  
That night, they had drank like they were in love.  
  


❄❄❄

  
  
“You’re lucky I like you,” Pepper said, legs wrapped around Natasha’s waist as she caressed her shoulders, playing with her hair. “Or I wouldn’t put up with you spacing out on me all the time.”  
  
Natasha smirked down at her, brow raised as she said,“Like me? You wish it was that simple.” Pepper went to argue, but Natasha kissed her, tongue tracing her bottom lip, nibbling the sensitive flesh as Pepper moaned.   
  
Pepper pushed her away slightly, cheeks flushed. “Your accent gets thicker the more you’re turned on, do you know that?”   
  
Natasha grinned, devious and enthusiastic towards the woman she had captured and captivated over the years. “Do I?” Pepper squirmed, eager to be touched and overran by lust.   
  
The nightmares she suffered were haunting; distorted images of real events.   
  
With James, she had found someone who acknowledged and comprehended what she had endured because he, too, had suffered in a similar fashion. Natasha remembered, parts and pieces, of what her life was. A man she loved, a man she married in the cold, barren night; a piece of ribbon tied to her ring finger in a perfect knot, joining them together as war and a bullet ripped them apart. There was a baby, alive and kicking in her stomach, dead before their life ever truly began. A piece of her she would never get back.   
  
“Are you okay?”  
  
Natasha looked down at her, eyes soft as she stared up at her, one hand rubbing her back, the other above her head on her pillow. Pepper didn’t have to understand her past to lend an ear, to open her heart and listen, and sometimes, it was easier to forget. Natasha leaned forward, placing a kiss to her lips before heading lower to her neck and chest, trailing her tongue around the arc reactor before kissing the center of it. She used to be insecure about the device implanted in her chest, hesitating to remove her top in front of her. Thankfully, with her new resolve and confidence, she was able to take charge of her body, and welcome Natasha back to it.  
  
“Fine now.”  
  
Natasha took Pepper’s hands into her own, placing them on either side of her hips as she took one nipple into her mouth, licking and sucking as he bit gently down, lavishing the bite with her tongue as Pepper shuddered and jerked, a hoarse moan racking her body as she pressed her hips forwards, squeezing Natasha’s hands as she repeated the motion to her other nipple. Natasha continued to alternate between breasts, torturing each mound with only her mouth, hands pinned down as she moved lower, licking a path down the flat of Pepper’s stomach.   
  
Pepper parted her legs further as Natasha traveled lower, head thrown back as she cried out, labia sensitive as Natasha took them into her mouth, sucking. Pepper’s chest rose and fell in rapid succession as Natasha continued to massage her slit slowly, side to side. When she began to whimper and whine, back arching off the mattress, Natasha quickened her pace, fleeting tongue showing no mercy. And when she screamed, Natasha slowed down, moving her tongue round and round, making sure to work her cliterous along the way. Pepper pulled and tugged, freeing her hands as she tangled them in Natasha’s hair.  
  
Natasha groaned, mouth vibrating as she continued to lick and suck, tongue flicking from side to side over her clit. While Pepper was distracted,eyes shut as she squirmed around, Natasha let her fingers play outside of her entrance, teasing her slit with the tip of her middle finger, reveling in the small sounds she made when getting desperate. She slid her middle finger in slowly, adding a second as Pepper contracted down and around her, warm and welcoming as Natasha alternated between curling and stretching her fingers up, working her G-spot over and over as her tongue never stopped.   
  
“‘Tasha,” she slurred, panting as she pulled her hair in a way Natasha had grown to love. She got off on the sounds she made, riding hard on her own fingers as her breath stuttered and started, Pepper thrusting forward as they grew louder.  
  


❄❄❄

  
“You can’t do this to me anymore.” Pepper had tears in her eyes that night, sat upon the same sofa Natasha had fallen in love with her on. The black bell-sleeve floor length gown she wore stained with her tears as they fell from her beautiful, pale face.   
  
“Virginia.” Natasha used her first name in times of distress, the black victorian lace pencil dress she wore a deep contrast. Pepper was classic, Natasha sultry. She liked it that way, but not when she cried; never when she cried. Natasha had wiped her face, mascara running down her cheeks. “Pepper, please.”  
  
“No. No, Natalia. You don’t understand,” she had said, raising her left hand as a gold band glinted in the light. “I’m married now. I love Harold, Natasha. I love him.”   
  
Natasha’s eyes had watered, throat constricting as she restrained herself. She wanted to run her fingers through Pepper’s hair, but it was braided into a high bun atop her head, lips glossed in a coral pink. “You love me.” She couldn’t believe anything else. Pepper had always waited for her, had always welcomed her back, but not this time.   
  
“I can’t. I can’t love you, Natasha.” Pepper turned her body away from her, head tilted back as she swallowed hard, another surge of tears overcoming her. “It hurts too much to love you,” she had whispered, barely audible, but Natasha had been trained to hear everything; to read everything about a person.   
  
Natasha hadn’t said anything further, rising to her feet as she adjusted her heel, mended heart shattering all over again as she walked out the door, fur coat over her shoulders as she moved through the cold winters night, red hair spilling in waves over her shoulder as she walked for hours. After all these years, and New York was still a mystery to her. A foreign land, filled with people she didn’t, couldn’t, wouldn’t ever understand. She knew she was being followed, but she didn’t care. Whoever it was, they weren’t out to kill her.  
  
“You’ve won,” she had finally said. “What more do you want?”  
  
She turned to face him, watching as Happy held back. “I didn’t come for trouble,” he had said, hands raised. “I have to admit to being curious, though.”  
  
Natasha had frowned at him, repulsed and confused. “Curious to what?”  
  
Happy sighed, head looking upwards, eyes looking up at the stars. “I knew I wasn’t her first choice. I thought it was Tony all these years, but it’s not. It’s you, and I guess...I just wanted to see what she saw. I mean, what she saw in you.”  
  
“You mean because of my past. You mean because I’m a killer. I’ll tell you what she saw in me, Happy Hogan, she saw what no one else could...not even myself. She saw more than my long history, more than an assassin. She saw a person deserving of love, and that’s what she gave to me. Love. And it’s what I had hoped to give in return.”  
  
That was the last conversation they ever had. Natasha had kept her distance as Pepper lived as husband and wife with him. The first encounter they had was three months after his death. There was no denying that there was still love between them, a spark that lit the darkness both had struggled against. James, Natasha had determined, would understand. There was no commitment there, they just always seemed to overlap, old feelings surfacing whenever convenient.   
  
The moment she realized she couldn’t live without her came a year after they had rekindled their romance. She had been attacked, cut opened, and robbed of valuable information that would turn the government against her, and send her on the hunt. One of the persons injured was Pepper, Lady Bullseye hired to use a compressed air rifle on her.Natasha had her revenge; however, pleased to see the woman paralyzed and buried alive. Of course, she was retrieved in the end, but only  because Natasha wasn’t through with her.   
  
She had returned to Pepper’s apartment, battered and broken, but still alive. Pepper was out of the hospital, settled on the same beige lounge they had shared years before, covered in two blankets and three throws; all of various colors. Her hair was in a messy bun atop her head, eyes blackened, and nose red—beautiful. Natasha, in similar fashion, plopped down on the loveseat beside her, resting her head upon her lap. There was nothing said between them, but it had been clear to them that this was forever; ‘til death do them part, no matter how hard they struggled.  
  


❄❄❄

  
  
Spent, Natasha rested in between her thighs, head resting against Pepper’s stomach as she kissed the warm skin beneath her lips, caressing her sides. “You’re not going to sleep, are you?” Pepper asked, stroking her hair.  
  
“No.”  
  
“I’ll make some coffee, then.” Natasha didn’t want to let her go, but Pepper insisted, kissing her gently as she got out of bed. The silk robe she wore looked like sapphires, bringing out the beauty Pepper so often tried to hide.   
  
A minute past, and then another. Natasha remembered a distant part of her life, an important part. She got out of bed, walking to the closet as she opened the door, pulling out a little white box in the corner. Grabbing it, she stood, slipping into a lavender robe as she made her way to the kitchen. She watched as Pepper filled the pot full of water, pouring it into the coffee maker before flipping the switch to turn it on.  
  
Pepper turned towards her, smiling at her softly as she asked what was in the box. Natasha beckoned with a wave of her hand for the other woman to follow. She sat down, Pepper following her, silent as she waited. Natasha’s hands shook as she opened the lid, pulling out a dark piece of ribbon, faded and old. Pepper placed her hand over her mouth, eyes large and watering as she knew exactly what it was Natasha was doing. Natasha took Pepper’s left hand into hers, tying the ribbon so that it connected with the golden band already placed on her ring finger.  
  
Cupping Pepper’s cheek into her own, she caught her breath. “No priest. Just us...saying that we love each other.”  
  
Pepper leaned forward, holding either side of Natasha’s face, pressing her lips against hers, feverous in her joy. “I love you,” she said, tears contrasting against her radiant smile.   
  
Natasha leaned her forehead against hers, arms wrapped around her waist. “I love you.”  
  


❄❄❄

  
Through her, Natasha had learned the pain of regret, the joy of kindness and the salvation of mercy.  



End file.
